Dave the Barbarian
Dave the Barbarian is an American animated television series created by Doug Langdale that premiered on January 22, 2004 on Disney Channel and ended on January 23, 2005. Continuing to air in other countries after the show ended, the show follows a barbarian named Dave, his sisters, uncle and pet dragon on their daily adventures. The show is the 4th Disney Channel Original Animated Series. Premise The series takes place in the Middle Ages, and centers on a powerful yet cowardly barbarian named Dave who lives in the fictitious land of Udrogoth along with his older sister Candy and younger sister Fang. His parents, Throktar and Glimia, are the King and Queen, but are away "fighting evil" across the world (though they sometimes communicate via a magic crystal ball or cauldron), and have left Candy in charge of the kingdom while Dave is supposed to defend the kingdom (since he is the biggest). Together the three siblings, along with their "wizard" uncle Oswidge, are left to run and protect the kingdom. There is a Narrator, referred to either as "the Narrator" or "the Storyteller." He is able to talk to the characters of the show, and vice versa. In fact, he was once captured by The Dark Lord Chuckles the Silly Piggy, and was forced to tell the story from his kidnapper's commands. Production The show was created and written by Doug Langdale. After premiering on Disney in 2004, it began broadcasting on Toon Disney a year later. In Latin America, the show is broadcast on Jetix. Much like its predecessors Hagar the Horrible, The Flintstones and the short-lived The Roman Holidays, Dave the Barbarian juxtaposes both the ancient and modern. Candy, for example, shops in the local mall and uses the crystal ball for online shopping sprees. Occasionally, the series even breaks the fourth wall with a character directly addressing the audience or even communicating to the narrator. Cancellation Despite critical praise it suffered low ratings[citation needed], Dave the Barbarian was put on hiatus in 2005,[citation needed] and no new episodes were since produced. It is one of the shortest-run Disney Channel Shows, with 21 episodes produced. Characters Main characters *'Dave' (voiced by Danny Cooksey) - the middle child and only brother of the three siblings. Dave is a huge, muscular barbarian war-prince who is very sensitive to pain and would rather knit and cook than fight evil. He is also afraid of many things and at least once an episode, he will be frightened somehow and shriek his high-pitched, effeminate scream. He is also allergic to many things. According to Fang, Dave wanted to be a barbarian when he was young, but thought a barbarian was a librarian who cut hair. His deepest desire is for everyone to act more noble and high class while he makes sweaters for poodles. Dave's catchphrases are "Bajabbers" and "Please don't hurt me! Oh, please, please, please!" *'Fang' (voiced by Tress MacNeille) - the youngest of the three siblings. Fang is a very rambunctious and uncivilized girl who loves to smash things. She has long orange hair in a ponytail. She resembles a cross between both Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm of The Flintstones. She is the butt of a running joke in which she is often mistaken for a monkey, hence her catchphrase, "Not a monkey!" However, she frequently acts and appears to look like a monkey and during one episode she finds a tribe of monkeys that exactly resemble her. She is too small to fight most of the time and resents Dave (who is very strong) because of his cowardice. Although she aspires to be a tough bararian princess (ala Xena), she secretly likes to play with dolls. In one episode where the castle is being destroyed, she cries "All my dollies are in there!", then quickly tries to cover up what she just said. Fang wields a spear in combat. Fang's other catch phrase is, "Dave!". *'Candy' (voiced by Erica Luttrell) - the oldest sister and sibling of the three siblings. Left in charge while the king and queen are away, Candy has a contemporary "valley girl" attitude and would rather shop and hang out than rule a kingdom. Candy's main ability is her martial arts skills.She is the kingdom's most beautiful girl and she's rather selfish, but gets over that in a small way while helping Hamwise and his wife defeat the nefarious Invisigoths. Candy is voiced by Erica Luttrell, she has used the quote "Don't mess with the princess" on a number of occasions and has referred to herself also as a Barbarian. She has displayed the most strength out of the family often when it comes to monsters destroying a shop or so; whether or not she is stronger than Dave remains unseen but out of the two, she is the one willing to use it. Her deepest desire is for everyone to act more cool and a better looking crown. She is the tritagonist. *'Oswidge' (voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson) - Dave, Fang and Candy's uncle, likely on Glimia's side of the family, though this is based solely on appearance[original research?]. A rather clumsy sorcerer who usually wreaks havoc with his spells rather than being useful. It was revealed in the episode Sorceror Material that he never really went to sorcerer school, he just worked in the cafeteria. Uncle Oswidge loves to eat and presents a rather unkempt appearance. Like his niece Fang, he secretly likes to play with dolls. His favorite food is ham and he cannot resist it. He also cannot resist something called "Nut Logs". His most powerful spell is "Benzoyl Peroxide!". But his knowledge of magical items, and most other things surpasses the rest of the family. His deepest desires are to be more thin, able to eat all he wants without gaining a pound, having a head full of hair and being a powerful wizard. Oswidge has many ingrown toenails, one of which got almost as high as his knee. *'Faffy' (voiced by Frank Welker) - the family's dumb pig-shaped pet dragon. Unlike most dragons, he breathes lightning and is domesticated, plus he does not have a tail. He does possess a wild streak that can be revealed when around other dragons, particularly evil ones with rebel attitudes. Faffy's name might be a parody of Fafnir's, a legendary dragon of Norse mythology. Voice legend Frank Welker provides the "voice" (mostly squeaks and snorts) of Faffy. It is mentioned in the show that Faffy has a one digit IQ. In the episode "Bad Food", in which it is revealed that he can talk, he is playing go-fish with friends. He says, "And the big chump most likely still thinks I can't talk!" *'Lula' (voiced by Estelle Harris) - the shrill, impatient and sarcastic talking enchanted sword in Dave's scabbard, this weapon with a Brooklyn accent has a tendency to insult Dave or the others when she sees fit. Her main ability is shooting a lightning bolt from the tip of her blade. She was once the sword of Argon the Ageless, but was used by Argon as the nose of a snowman, and left there for centuries. She is 20,000 years old and is related to many other magical weapons, including mighty Mjolnir, hammer of Thor, and the trident of the water god Poseidon. Secondary characters *'King Throktar and Queen Glimia' (voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson and Erica Luttrell) - they are the proper rulers of Udrogoth, the parents of Dave, Candy and Fang. They are away fighting evil around the world, though they can communicate to their children via Oswidge's crystal ball, which seems to operate like a phone. Occasionally are called while in a terrible situation. *'The Narrator' (voiced by Jeff Bennett) - the narrator of the series. He has never been seen in an episode. *'Dinky and Cheezette' (voiced by Erica Luttrell and Tress MacNeille) - they are Princess Candy's best friends, who are sometimes unsupportive - and wisely so - towards her actions. They are as obsessive about fashion, clothes, and social lives as is Candy. *'Mrs. Gert Bogmelon' (voiced by Lisa Kaplan) - a witch-like shopkeeper who loves money and loves to rip off her customers. She can be cowed by Fang and other aggressive people but takes advantage of meek people like Dave. She sells evil weasels, mystical swords, and other plot-related paraphernalia, such as used T-shirts for sporting events. *'Twinkle The Marvel Horse' (voiced by Jeff Bennett) - A parody of Christopher Walken. He is a magic pony with a rainbow tail, but inside he is an overly depressed and psychotic mind. This is apparently because he gets left on his own in the stable all the time. He often talks about his dreams, which are very disturbing. He is capable of flight, though he has no wings. Antagonists *'The Dark Lord Chuckles the Silly Piggy' (voiced by Paul Rugg) - an evil pig with a high-collared cape (and equally high voice) bent on ruling Udrogoth. He is the main antagonist of the show. Chuckles lives in a castle on the outskirts of the kingdom. He possesses the Mystic Amulet of Hogswineboar (named so because hogs, swine, and boars are all synonyms for the word 'pig'). This grants him amazing mystical powers such as telekinesis, shape-shifting, blasting magic to rival Lula's, and conjuration. He is also a whiz with technology, as evidenced by the Mecha-Dave. His schemes usually rely on a particular gimmick (like giant clams, giant ducks, evil pastries, or evil furniture). Catchphrase: (whenever he gets hurt) "Ooh, my little piggy body part". It was also revealed in one episode that he has a nephew named Knuckles the Silly Piggy, who wanted to be the Harvest Hog instead of a dark lord of evil. *'Malsquando' (voiced by Rob Paulsen) - an evil sorcerer and Oswidge's rival. He has an obsession with taking over the world and getting a lot of money. He was revealed to be a member of the Evil Socerer's union. He also runs a shop that cures hiccats (magical hiccups that produce cats from one's mouth). Unlike Oswidge, he actually went to wizard's school. *'Quosmir' (voiced by Michael McShane) - the god of freshly laundered trousers, overused punctuation and possibly other random and ridiculous things. He has mommy issues and carries a security blanket known as his "ni-ni lankie". He often experiences short-term memory loss and attention deficit disorder. He is a green skinned naga-like giant with the lower half of a snake instead of legs; he is always wearing a blue cape and a combover. He has a severe inferiority complex that is only exacerbated in the presence of his mother. He has immense magical powers including flight, super-speed, and flaming loogies. *'Princess Irmoplotz and Queen Zonthara' (voiced by Melissa Rivers and Joan Rivers) - the evil sorceress princess of Hyrogoth that is trying to destroy Dave (or more likely she just wants to make Dave's life miserable). Her mother Zonthara is the ruler of Hyrogoth, and keeps on trying to teach Irmaplotz to be more evil. Her father is good, making her half-evil. Earlier in the show, Dave and Irmaplotz fell in love, but Dave decided that they were too different, and ended up dumping her, where she is now seeking revenge. She still may have feelings for him though; she once got the chance to destroy Dave, but she chose not to do so. She is similar to Dave in that they both have the same odd hobbies and interests (she and Dave both love "bad Poetry" for example). She also has the same allergies as Dave. She is very beautiful and an intellectual; she would be a great match for Dave, only if she were not an evil princess. She occasionally wears glasses (she has stated that she does not like to wear them as she feels they make her look bookish, even though she cannot see things from far away without them), due to her being nearsighted. *'Ned Frischman' (voiced by Richard Steven Horvitz) - a nerd who works at a pants factory in the year 1994. He gains a radioactive zipper which he uses to travel back into time to attempt conquering the world by using the advanced technology of the future, such as the Game Guy (a parody of a Game Boy), and a joke book from the 1940s, both plans of which were thwarted by Dave and his family (Though he is defeated by Faffy, Lula and Twinkle the marvel horse because they do not have thumbs to play on the Game Guys). Historical errors This series has many historical issues that may or may not be intended by the show's producers. Although the series is theoretically set during the time of the Germanic invasions, many episodes include twenty-first century items or ideas or otherwise include other outside-the-current-era items/ideas. For example, one episode includes several New World birds, such as parrots and parakeets, more than 1000 years before the America's were discovered. In the same episode, various people throughout the kingdom are listening to rock 'n' roll, which wasn't invented until the 1960's. Another episode includes pirates, when the term would not be widely used until the 17th century. Awards and Nominations *'Annie Awards' :2005 - Storyboarding in an Animated Television Production - Wendy Grieb for episode "The Maddening Sprite of the Stump" (Won) :2005 - Writing in an Animated Television Production - Evan Gore & Heather Lombard for episode "Ned Frischman: Man of Tomorrow" (Nominated) Category:2004 Category:Disney Channel Original Series Category:Animated television series Category:Cancelled Shows‏‎ Category:Disney Channel shows Category:Shows_with_wikis Category:2014 Category:2016 Category:Toon Disney Shows